Carol French and Carolyn Knapp, dairy farmers and co-founders of Pennsylvania Landowner Group for Awareness and Solutions (PLGAS) from Bradford County will present “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Effects of the Gas Extraction Boom on PA’s Most Impacted County” at Blossom Hill Mennonite Church on Saturday, March 10 at 1:00 PM.

Both of their families have leased land for gas exploration as have most of their neighbors. There are nine well pads within a mile of Carol’s farm. They wish to share their experiences and how the boom has reshaped their community.

Carol is a native of Bradford County whose family has leased land for gas exploration for over 40 years. When she and herhusband signed this lease, they had no knowledge of Marcellus Shale and the process of horizontal drilling and high-volume, slickwater hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”). Carolyn is an organic dairy farmer who has also leased land.

As friends and neighbors, Carol and Carolyn have worked together to educate themselves on how best to protect their land and animals from the dangers associated with fracking. They now share their knowledge with others so that well-informed decisions about leasing can be made.

Both would like to share their experience with farmers, hunters, landowners and others from Lancaster who want to know more about the impacts of fracking on drilled communities and wider consequences for Pennsylvania. As a “downstream” community, Lancaster is particularly vulnerable to water degradation issues in the Susquehanna River, gas pipeline and compressor station expansion, air quality issues and waste disposal.